September 28th, 2009
KwaZulu Natal is known for many things - surfing, warm weather and gorgeous mountains to name only a few.
But ghosts? Surely not.
But whether you believe in ghosts or not, KwaZulu-Natal is argued to be home to just as many unearthly beings as surfers...
Charlotte, the ghost of Nottingham Road Hotel
The Nottingham Road Hotel is an incredibly old building - so naturally it just has to have a ghost.
The hotel's oldest resident, Charlotte, is believed to have been a prostitute at the turn of the century. The story goes that she fell in love with a British army officer, but her feelings were unrequited. Romantics say she killed herself because of her broken heart, while others believe she was murdered to cover up her inappropriate feelings.
She met her end after she fell (or was thrown) over the balcony of her favourite room in the hotel - number ten.
Residents of the area, hotel guests and even passers-by have all had an encounter with Charlotte - making her one of the most "undisputed" ghosts in South Africa. She is often seen gliding around the hotel, seemingly keeping a watchful eye on everything.
Charlotte also has very particularly tastes and has been known to rearrange flowers to her own liking. She also likes to move mirrors around, some say in order to show herself off to her best advantage.
Those who sleep in room ten will often find their clothes neatly folded the next morning and are often wakened by Charlotte having a lengthy conversation with an unseen friend. She is also a bit of a tease and loves to ring the bell for room service to be brought to room 22, even though there is no such room!
Miranda, the ghost of Natal Training College
Miranda was the beautiful 19-year-old daughter of a high official at the building once known as Government House.
Her father's stature in the community came into question when Miranda fell in love with a lowly stable boy. They attempted to elope, but where caught along the road to Durban.
The stable boy lost his job and Miranda was locked in her room where she eventually died of a broken heart.
Today, she still mournfully roams Government House, casting a sad shadow on the students that now inhabit the Natal Training College that eventually took over the building.
The Traveller, the ghost of Ketelfontein
Ketelfontein house on Old Howick Road in Pietermaritzburg was built in 1862 and was originally used as a hostelry where the transport riders could change horses or rest overnight before continuing on their journey.
One stormy evening a traveller arrived with a horse so exhausted that it could no longer carry on without a night's rest.
The man retired to a room and pulled out a bag containing some of the finest diamonds ever seen. He had nearly ridden his horse into the ground in an attempt to escape the police with his stolen treasure.
During the night the police arrived and a gun-battle ensued, ending in the death of the traveller. After an extensive search, the diamonds were still not found.
The man had hidden them in anticipation of the police catching up with him and to this day they have never been found. But residents of Ketelfontein often report spotting the traveller desperately searching for his bounty...
Sergeant Bosch, the ghost of the Polo Tavern
Sergeant Bosch was a regular patron of the Polo Tavern, often arriving on his noisy Harley-Davidson motor bike.
One night in 1919, he misjudged himself and crashed into lamppost, just outside the tavern. He was killed instantly, but a photograph of the recent accident scene showed a hazy, fuzzy figure of a man climbing the steps to the tavern...
Onlookers, who were pictured in the photo, swore that no one entered the tavern while the photo was being taken.
Since then, Bosch has made frequent visits to his favourite watering hole. He even leaves evidence behind, forgetting to clear away his beer bottle and glass long after the pub was cleaned and locked up.
The ghosts of Alexandra Park
Ghosts have a fairly notorious reputation for being noisy and disruptive, disturbing our sleep at night. But some are actually fairly active during the day, just like the cricketers of Alexandra Park.
During the summer months, many people play late into the warm evenings - but often a thick fog rolls over the area and shrouds the entire cricket pavilion and leaving onlookers nearly blind.
This is when you should stop and listen. Soon you will hear the voice of the umpire proclaiming a "no ball" or the "end of the over". Soon enough other men's voices will join in the shouting, encouraging people to "run!" or "stay!"
When the umpire firmly shouts "six!" the grandstand echoes with quiet clapping and a lovely voice cries "bravo!"
When the mist suddenly lifts as quickly as it descends, there is no one there. No one knows who the cricketers or spectators are or why they only play quietly in the mist, but one thing is certain - it happens every year.
Intrigued? Book one of our affordable Durban packages and investigate these ghostly sightings for yourself.
Find out more about South Africa's legends with GoTravel24:
- Table Mountain Myths and Legends
- Cape Town myths, legends and mysteries
- Like you've seen a ghost...
- Mermaids in the Karoo
- Legendary Cape Town
- Gauteng ghost stories
Do you know of an even scarier ghost story? Let us in on it in the comment section below!
User Comments
Charlotte, the ghost of Nottingham Road HotelSubmitted by Anonymous on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 11:16. |
The picture that you have displayed of Charlotte, the ghost of Nottingham Road Hotel is also in another article that I have read on the Internet. |
Ghost on The BluffSubmitted by Dylan on Thu, 02/10/2011 - 22:45. |
With responce to an article posted here on 08/18/2009 sent in by anonymous.. Well there is a house on the Bluff in a street called Singleton Road, the number of the house eludes me. My stay really was one of an outsider. I lived next door. And what I saw defies logic. This house in Singleton Road, Bluff was featured many years back in the YOU magazine. I would appreciate any correspondence regarding this. Rgds |
HILLCRESTSubmitted by Anonymous on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 10:43. |
My son and two friends were walking in the bush nearby a pond when all three of them passed out at the same time and only gained consciousness at dusk. When they looked up at the pond they say a sinister entity. The three boys started running away but said they fell like they were being pulled back, as if their hearts were being pulled out of their bodies. They were all 17 and 18 years at the time and they cried like babies while running away. My son is very reluctant to talk about it and leaves the room when i try and bring up the subject. Has anybody had a similar experience? The area I'm referring to is located in Hillcrest, KwaZulu Natal |
There is also a ghost calledSubmitted by Anonymous on Mon, 08/24/2009 - 11:12. |
There is also a ghost called highway Sheila which roams the N2 freeway in Kzn which runs along the coast.Does anyone have any info on her regarding dates and cause of death,etc?It is believed that she was murdered by her boyfriend. |
ghost at maritzburg collegeSubmitted by dylan botha on Wed, 08/19/2009 - 16:54. |
maritzburg college, was around at the turn of the century and was used as a hospital for british soldiers. and many a soldier past in the main dining hall. it is believed that a ghost still wonders the hall at night. publicity house in PMB, that is situated close to city hall was the old court house in the old days. it was the court house back in the day when the still hung the prisioners. it is said that u can hear the chains from the shackles of prisioners ghosts, as the luber around. |
Two friends and myselfSubmitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 22:26. |
Two friends and myself rented a house in Valley Vista Rd, Pietermaritzburg in 2002. All of us independently noticed a strange undefinable movement at the top of a staircase that lead to the bedrooms. Closer inspection never revealed the source of this “optical illusion”. One night I was alone in this house and I saw a definite figure about normal human height moving along this landing. I got up thinking my digs mate had come home unexpectedly. He hadn’t. I went back to bed and 5 minutes later saw the “figure” move back in the opposite direction. None of us ever felt threatened by it |
wow interestingSubmitted by Alex on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 18:07. |
Its amazing you find all these stories about the paranormal and ghosts, thats what got me interested in doing what i do. I am apart of the spitsa team, supernatural phenomena investigating team of south africa, we have done loads of investigations and have captured stax of evidence during our investigations that are unbiased and unaltered. we have our websiite www.spitsa.co.za and are on face book under the group spitsa, if anyone would like to join. news 24 has featured a story on us before, been in most our commercial papers, radio shows and tv,SABC and MNET (Carte Blanch). ghosts is something that interest millions around the world. is there something out there? i would have to say yes, our evidence proves that. for those who question it take a look at our website at the evidence we have gathered during investigations and the question it. Alex |
The ghost at Buxton - TaungSubmitted by Jim Conway on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 16:30. |
Back in 1899, the Afrikaner settlers were busy with a Lime mine in the Buxton area (The world famous Taung Child skull was found there). Jan van der Roodt was a local miner. He fell in love with Elmari Du Toit, daughter of one of the mine owners. When Mr. Du Toit found out about this, he invited Jan for a walk to the Blue pool area where there a long cave with two entrences....part of the mine. There Jan was murdered by some local Tshwana men hired by Du Toit. It was December 24th 1899. They say that Jan's ghost walks the tunnel ever december 24th. Some say its just the local baboons. But I have seen Jan, and I am cold just thinking of it. And so have many others. |
Pretoria Boys HighSubmitted by Over-and-out on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 16:02. |
My high school Pretoria Boys High has stood for over a century and was a field hospital for British soldiers during the Boer War. I was in boarding school for five years and would often be in the school building at night on my way back to hostel. It is rumoured that people (including old-boys who were killed in the both World Wars) can be heard walking along the corridors. The wooden floors creak under the pressure of footsteps, but when you stop walking you can still hear creaking - freaked me out! We also had a guy who fell from our bell tower - physical evidence of finger marks on the bricks 10m up can be seen where his ghost apparently climbed its way back up the bell tower - also freaky as hell! The beautiful school, a national monument actually, is rife with history and stories of the departed.The master in charge of the archives would be a wealth of information! |
Keep it upSubmitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 15:40. |
Loved the article. Keep it up and get us some more. |
Ghost of Nottingham RoadSubmitted by El-Marie on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 15:27. |
Enjoyed this! I went to Nottingham Road Primary school and my father used to have a drink in the Pub on a Friday whilst waiting for school to end and for us to go back to the farm for the weekend! Many people claim to have seen the ghost of Charlotte! |
ghostsSubmitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 14:51. |
we live on the bluff were there is a house which is haunted. people by the house and with in a month or so a sign go's up. for sale. know one stays for longer than a month. |
very interesting. that partSubmitted by Anonymous on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 13:17. |
very interesting. that part of kzn is made for ghost stories! |
More ghostsSubmitted by gt24.editor.kelly on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 12:34. |
Thanks Bass Monkey! Stay tuned - we have many more articles like this coming up, promise! And if you have anything you would like us to "investigate" please give us a shout here or mail us at info@gotravel24.com. Kelly :) |
Ghost StoriesSubmitted by Bass Monkey on Tue, 08/18/2009 - 11:41. |
Well this is very interesting...we need more topics like this, I loved it |
